Picks and Pans Review: Ann-Margret

While A-M fans will be gratified by the worshipful tone of the text and pleased to find 254 pages of pictures of the Swedish-born actress-singer, this is something more than the standard gushing fan bio. It is, in fact, the epitome of the form. Peters, 28, a Bronx-born publicist and researcher, is a superfan, so devoted to Ann-Margret it's almost scary. This book is based on material from his collection, which began in 1963 when he first saw her in Bye Bye Birdie and now includes 20,000 photographs and slides, dozens of scrapbooks and considerable correspondence between him and not only Ann-Margret herself but also her producer/manager husband, Roger Smith. As Peters and free-lance writer/publicist David Smith trace Ann-Margret's life from her birth in Sweden in 1941, there's a parallel tale of Peters' developing infatuation with her. He has her name and a heart tattooed on his left arm, and this book is essentially his life's work. It makes for an odd, not uninteresting saga. (Delilah/Putnam's, $24.95 hardcover, $12.95 paper)